Tempers flare, Forestview girls rally past Crest for title

Forestview's Nikkyanna McCaskill drives around Crest's A'Diyah Ussery on Friday night. The Jaguars rallied for a 61-59 win in the Big South 3A Conference girls championship.

By Clark Leonard

Published: Friday, February 22, 2013 at 10:33 PM.

SHELBY — In a game where tempers flared, the Forestview High girls basketball team found a way to overcome the emotional fireworks and complete a stunning comeback, 61-59, to edge host Crest in the Big South 3A Conference championship game on Friday night.

The Lady Jaguars stormed back from a 54-40 deficit entering the final four minutes at Ed Peeler Gymnasium to claim their seventh consecutive Big South 3A tournament title and eighth in the league’s 12 years of existence.

That came after an exchange between Forestview’s Kaitlyn Taylor and Crest’s A’Diyah Ussery after a whistle in the open court with 3:45 remaining. It was unclear exactly what began the altercation, which led to the both players being removed from competition and was cut short by teammates pulling them apart.

If the decisions on the players stand as “ejections for fighting,” that could lead to missed games for them in the playoffs.

“I’m still not 100 percent sure what happened,” said Forestview coach Kevin Gurganus, whose bench was on the opposite end. “I saw the reaction. It was so far away and there were so many bodies in front of me.

“It’s unfortunate for both teams. In tense games, sometimes people lose their heads. They’re both good players.”

SHELBY — In a game where tempers flared, the Forestview High girls basketball team found a way to overcome the emotional fireworks and complete a stunning comeback, 61-59, to edge host Crest in the Big South 3A Conference championship game on Friday night.

The Lady Jaguars stormed back from a 54-40 deficit entering the final four minutes at Ed Peeler Gymnasium to claim their seventh consecutive Big South 3A tournament title and eighth in the league’s 12 years of existence.

That came after an exchange between Forestview’s Kaitlyn Taylor and Crest’s A’Diyah Ussery after a whistle in the open court with 3:45 remaining. It was unclear exactly what began the altercation, which led to the both players being removed from competition and was cut short by teammates pulling them apart.

If the decisions on the players stand as “ejections for fighting,” that could lead to missed games for them in the playoffs.

“I’m still not 100 percent sure what happened,” said Forestview coach Kevin Gurganus, whose bench was on the opposite end. “I saw the reaction. It was so far away and there were so many bodies in front of me.

“It’s unfortunate for both teams. In tense games, sometimes people lose their heads. They’re both good players.”

Crest coach Shane Compton said Ussery was provoked.

“Their girl threw a punch and we responded,” Compton said. “We just can’t respond to that.”

Leah Smith also fouled out for the Jaguars (20-6), while Se’Dasia Love, Caleia Jones and Shadalya Hamilton fouled out for Crest (18-4), which with the loss of Ussery was left with one starter on the floor by game’s end.

Forestview took advantage of the attrition, using a mix of steals and layups to earn the comeback victory. Bre Armstrong’s old-fashion three-point play with 1:40 left cut it to 57-55 before a Nikkyanna McCaskill layup off a steal tied it 57-all.

Crest’s Amber Mintz sank a pair of free throws for a 59-57 edge with 1:31 remaining before McCaskill tied it with another layup.

The Jaguars’ Felicia Berry and McCaskill each hit 1 of 2 free throws in the final minute.

“Things were going to have to start going our way, and they did,” Gurganus said. “We caught a lot of breaks.”

Gurganus said the ability to come up big in the midst of such a tense finish was a product of his five seniors showing the way.

“My seniors, they stepped up, calmed everybody down when I was dealing with the situation,” Gurganus said.

The final play, out of a timeout with 31.1 seconds left and the Jaguars clinging to the 61-59 lead, featured Crest trying to foul but Forestview able to pass it around and avoid being fouled. Its success was no shock to Gurganus.

“We work on that two or three times a week,” Gurganus said.

Compton was disappointed in more than a lost lead after the game.

“The officials lost complete control of the game,” Compton said. “They had no business being in a conference championship.

“You’ve got to give (Forestview) credit. They fought back and found a way to win.”